little ducklings
by ohgoditsbriony
Summary: This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata
1. tomato juice

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**dedication: **For everyone who has read _Fifty Days. _It's the happily ever after you all want (but it's completely unrelated, woo). Please check out my new fanfic, MAD DOGS, and I'll try to update this drabble collection daily.

* * *

Sasuke first meets her when he is six years old and the sun is shining.

He's not at home, because Itachi isn't either, and he's _bored—_he thinks, at first, that he'll practise aiming with his ranged weapons because he's not very good yet, but there are older children in the training area and he's not one for sharing, so he decides he'll walk around, instead. He shoves his hands in his pockets and buys a tomato in the marketplace—they're fresh and new, and he's feeling slightly peckish—and then he decides he'll walk somewhere nicer; so, munching on his tomato, he walks through the forest with his feet in the river, just like he does with Itachi, when his brother is back from his missions. He walks and he walks, and then he stops and squints and _looks._

He sees her.

She's asleep beneath a cherry-blossom tree.

At first, he doesn't want to go over, because she looks so small and peaceful; but then she starts yawning, stretching like a cat as she basks in the sunlight. She's wearing a cream kimono, but it's dirtied by the soil; and she looks so pretty bathed in her golden glow, with her rosy cheeks and dark hair, that he decides he _has _to talk to her. He splashes through the river, walks up to her, brandishes his (half-eaten) tomato with sticky fingers and says, "I only ate _some _of it. You can have some, if you like."

She blinks at him.

"Uhm… o—okay," she says, and plucks his tomato off him with girly, dainty fingers.

She takes a tiny little baby bite.

He tries his hardest not to smile and doesn't ask her name.


	2. waiting

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**dedication: **Thanks very much for reviewing!

* * *

A day later, he stumbles across her again by accident.

He's waiting for Itachi to come home—it feels like he's _always _waiting for Itachi to come home—so he goes and stands by the big Konoha gates, where he feels so small; and he stands for a little while longer, until his legs get tired and he has to sit down. He's just waiting—he's _always _just waiting—and then he looks to the left and sees big eyes staring back at him from behind the legs of a harsh-faced man. Sasuke looks at him and thinks he must be her father—he's got lines on his face just like Fugaku, but when he looks down at the little girl, he smiles a little bit and then goes back to talking.

Sasuke tilts his head and looks at her.

She stares back.

Then, tentatively, she waves.

When he waves back, her smile is so wide that Sasuke thinks he has to see her again and again and again.


	3. brothers

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **Here's a little bit of Uchiha bro love for you guys. If you favourite, please review! :)

* * *

Three days later, Itachi comes back in the middle of the night—Sasuke only realises, because the kitchen light is on downstairs when he goes to the toilet. He freezes where he is, and then his mind catches up with his body and he's suddenly halfway down the stairs; he practically flings himself through the open door and into the kitchen, and then he finds himself face to face with his brother, who is in the middle of brewing a cup of tea. He looks slightly surprised to see Sasuke, and goes to say—

"I didn't expect you to be awake, little brother."

—But Sasuke doesn't listen.

He practically _tackles _Itachi in his excitement.

His brother laughs.

"You should go back to bed," he says, chuckling, and attempts to steer Sasuke towards the door.

"I'm _not_," Sasuke huffs, "You have to tell me about your adventures first."

"You know I'm not supposed to."

"But _Itachi—"_

"Fine," his brother says, shaking his head as he raises his hands in surrender—he lets Sasuke sit up at the kitchen table, makes a mental note to come up with some sort of excuse as to why Sasuke was up so late for the morning, and then pours himself a tea. "_Fine_—but if I get thrown in jail because of this, it's all _your _fault. And besides; _you_ have to tell me about all of_ your_ adventures, too."


	4. storyteller

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **I am literally only surviving on coffee at the moment.

* * *

Itachi talks for an hour—his voice is soft and comforting, and it sort of… _floats. _Sasuke listens attentively, with wide amazed eyes, as his brother spins a tale of enemy ninja and forbidden scrolls—and then, at some point, that inkling of truth disappears entirely, and Itachi is just telling stories; he talks about dragons and a mermaid who took him to the depths of the sea, just off the coast of Iwa. He leans forwards and sips his tea, and Sasuke leans forwards and clings to every word, and then his brother says, "I believe that is enough—it is far past the time of talking, little brother. You should be asleep."

"I want to hear _more_," Sasuke whispers—but his voice is a little slurred. He's tired.

"You're barely staying awake as it is," Itachi chuckles.

"You haven't heard about _my _adventures, yet."

"Oh?"

"I met a—" Sasuke yawns, rubbing his eyes. "—very strange person, with eyes like a ghost. She was very shy."

"She sounds very interesting," Itachi says, as he picks up the teapot and cup—he places them in the sink, rinsing them before leaving them to dry, and then turns, wiping his hands down on a towel. "What is her name, then—this ghost-girl of yours?"

Sasuke doesn't reply.

He has fallen asleep with his head in his hands at the table.


	5. ghost girl

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **_The Cabin in the Woods _is a very good film—seriously, a horror film where you actually sort of like the characters.

* * *

Sasuke wakes up in his own bed, with the covers tucked up beneath his chin—he blinks sleep out of his eyes, rubs his face, and then yawns blearily, stretching. He sits up and the covers fall away; for a little while, he just sits there, because it's _comfortable_ and he doesn't want to move—and then his eyes widen and he remembers that Itachi is home, so he throws the covers from his lap and runs to his brother's room. The door is slightly ajar, and his fingers hover on the handle—and then he is about to push it open, when a hand falls around his wrist. He looks up and Mikoto is smiling gently down at him. She says, "Go out and play, Sasuke—your brother is sleeping."

He frowns. "But, _Ma_—"

"Out, Sasuke," she says, and makes shooing motions with her hands. "Itachi has only just gotten back—let him _rest."_

He huffs for a second, and then he turns and walks away. He's not sure what to do now—he wants to speak and walk and play with his brother for as long as possible, because he has to cling to every single tiny moment—and so he's a little bit lost. He walks aimlessly from the Uchiha compound to the marketplace, kicking pebbles across the pavement as he does so. He shoves his hands in his pockets and his bottom lip sticks out, and he very nearly walks into that girl from before, he's so caught up in his own—they both step aside at the very last moment, but she looks very flustered and he is slightly embarrassed.

"Uh," he says.

"A—ah," she replies.

"It's _you_," he finishes, and she turns very red.

There's a long silence.

He sticks his hand out clumsily, because he's being _polite._

"I'm Uchiha Sasuke," he announces.

She takes his hand very tentatively, gingerly, and shakes it slowly.

Her hand is very soft, he thinks.

"My name is H—Hyuuga Hinata," she tells him, and he remembers her name.


	6. shadow

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **Please check out my new fic, _post-mortem_—and also, guys, I'm totally midway through the newest chapter of _Fifty Days._

* * *

It is only after Sasuke has introduced himself and stepped back to appraise the tiny ghost girl in front of him that he sees she is carrying a loaf of bread—and he thinks that's a very strange thing to simply be carrying around with you, and he points at it. He's about to ask why she's got it, but then she suddenly goes very red again and shoves it behind her back, as she stutters, "It's n—nothing. I, ah—I r—really ought to go now."

She hurries past him.

He hesitates for a second, and then he wanders after her.

They walk like that for a little while.

She's in front, face a furious, flaming red, and he's behind, hands in his pockets, tilting his head as he watches her.

She turns around.

"P—_please_," she begins.

He cuts across her. "Where're we going?"

Her eyes widen.

Then, she wrings her hands together and says, "My father will be c—cross if I am late."

"Mine will be too," Sasuke shrugs. "But he doesn't care so much—not now that Itachi's back—so you can show me whatever it is you're going to see _really _quickly, can't you?"


	7. forgotten

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **Asdfghjkl, just reading _Fullmetal Alchemist _for the first time, since I only ever watched the first anime, and oh my giddy gosh, this is _beautiful__._

* * *

They're stood in front of a pond, hidden in the weeds and back alleys of Konoha—there's this little twisty, hidden maze of tiny alleyways, and then, out of nowhere, they step out into this small clearing. Sasuke's never seen the place before in his life, but Hinata knows just how to get there—and then she walks very slowly, very quietly, over to one of the bushes of reeds, and she parts them with her hands, tentatively. Then, turning back over her shoulder, she beckons for Sasuke to follow; and he does so, ever so quietly, because he thinks he has to be—it feels like a quiet moment, just like it feels like a quiet moment when his mother has fallen asleep on her futon and he doesn't want to wake her. He walks over and peers over Hinata's shoulder, and raises his eyebrows.

"Oh," he says.

_That _is what the bread is for.

Hinata shows him a little family of ducklings.

They're tiny and fragile, with puffy bellies and soft feathers—and he watches, eyes wide, as Hinata reaches out and scoops one up, with gentle, tiny hands. Then she holds the duckling out, and Sasuke stares at it.

"Y—you _can _touch her, y—you know," Hinata says eventually, smiling.

"It's, uh," he shakes his head, "I don't want to."

"Okay," she smiles, stifles a laugh, and then strokes the duckling's head. "They're all o—on their own; my father said that their mother left them, and i—it's sad, so I thought I'd look after them. I can be their _p—pretend _mother."


	8. daddy

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **Ooh, this one is much longer than the others~ Thanks for all the reviews!

* * *

Sasuke crouches down and watches as Hinata feeds the ducklings small amounts of bread—she tears little chunks away using her fingers, and places them in the palm of her hands, offering food out to the five tiny creatures; and they step forwards, tentatively, one by one, feathers ruffled and wings shaking. He watches as they snap at the bread—they're quick and fast at first, as if they're scared it'll disappear, but then Hinata starts making these soft, cooing noises, like a mother hushing a stubborn child, and they slow down. They're gentler, then. She holds a chunk of bread out to Sasuke, and he blinks, confused, because _he's _not a duck—and then she says, "W—why don't you try feeding them a little? They d—don't bite. Not always, anyway. That one," she says, and points at a duck with a small tuft of hair sticking up on its head, "Bit me once. H—he's much nicer now, though."

He takes a look at the duck.

It almost looks as if the tiny thing is sizing him up.

He shakes his head slowly.

"I, uh—I don't want to," he says, and then asks, "What are their names, anyway?"

Hinata looks stumped, then. "I d—don't really call them a—anything."

"How can you be a proper mother if you don't even name your children?" Sasuke frowns, and crosses his arms over his chest. "It can't be helped, then—_I'll _name them for you."

He looks at the little ducklings one by one—and it feels a lot like they look back at him. He peers at them. There are five of them, and they are each yellow-breasted and fluffy, but they're all slightly different—one of them is so tiny that he is certain, had Hinata not taken care of it, that it would not have lasted one week without a mother. Another of them is fat and dumpy and keeps trying to steal all the chunks of bread from its siblings. One of the others sits on its own and watches them—it is very wary, and Sasuke doesn't think he's seen Hinata touch that one at all—and another is too friendly, waddling up to Sasuke without a care in the world. The last one—the one with the little tuft of hair on its head—is still sizing him up, he thinks, and he decides on their names, just like that. "That one," he says, and points at the smallest, "Is Teeny. He is Dumpy, and that is Sulky. This one," he continues, looking at the overly-friendly duck and shooing it with his hands, "Is Happy."

"O—okay," Hinata nods. "But, this one?"

She holds out the last duck.

Sasuke scowls at it.

"_That _is Fang," he announces, "And he is _evil."_

"Oh," Hinata says, and then she starts to laugh.

Sasuke frowns.

"What's so funny?"

"It's j—just, _you _said that a mother should name her c—children," Hinata giggles, "But _you _named them. So d—does that make you their _father?"_

Sasuke_ swears _Fang smiles at him.


	9. safe

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **I have a love/hate relationship with Pottermore. On the one hand, it's so slow. On the other hand, asdfghjkl, it's _beautiful._

* * *

Sasuke sits with his legs sticking out in front of him, hands in the dirt and grass underneath him—he's sat in front of the duck pond with his shoes kicked off; earlier, Hinata managed to convince him to put his feet in the water, but it had been _way _too cold, and so now he's sat at the side, basking in the sunlight. It's warm and he likes the way there's a little pool of sunlight, slipping in through the cracks and the shadows; they're surrounded by fences and way out of the way of the marketplace, and he thinks, absently, that he should maybe get home. Then he looks at Hinata. She's rolled her kimono up as far as it can go, revealing pale white legs clad in dark, loose-fitting shorts; he's seen Itachi wearing shorts a bit like them, whenever he has to go out for a mission, and he thinks it's odd that someone as _girly _and _dainty _as Hinata should be wearing those shorts. She's stood at the edge of the pond, where the water reaches just midway up her calves; it gets deeper only a few steps further in, but she's content where she is. She smiles, leaning over and pushing Dumpy gently into the water—Dumpy swims for a second and then does this little roll onto his back, webbed feet waving in the air, and Hinata lets out a little giggle, scooping him up with both her hands and holding him close.

He snorts.

It's all very—

_Nice._

And then he frowns, because Hinata hasn't spoken to him.

"Oi," he says, trying to catch her attention, and he stands up, shoving his hands into his pockets—she turns to look at him expectantly, cautiously, as if she's scared of what he'll say—and he crosses over to her, until he's stood directly in front of her. Then he looks at her, at her pristine kimono, and her rolled-up sleeves, and asks, "What've you got to be so _clean _for?"

She looks surprised, "Father will be a—angry if I get this dirty."

"How come?"

"He j—just will."

"That's not a good reason," Sasuke says, and then pushes her with the palms of his hands. Hinata lets out a little squeak of surprise and horror, and then there's the tiniest of splashes and the ducklings all run squawking and flapping to the opposite side of the pond. Hinata is not too wet—the upper half of her kimono is mostly dry, but the bottom half is soaked through. She stares at Sasuke, gobsmacked, and he looks back at her. Then, with a grin, he sits down next to her in the water, and she looks bemused. "It's more fun if you get dirty," he explains, and then flicks some water at her. "See?"

"B—but _father—"_

"He's not going to be angry for _forever_," Sasuke rolls his eyes. "My Pa gets angry too, but he always stops when Ma looks at him and puts her hands on her hips. He says he's in for a whole world of trouble when she does that."

"I, ah," Hinata looks troubled. "My mother isn't—she can't do that anymore."

"That's okay."

She blinks.

"If he gets too angry, put your hands on your hips and tell him he's in for a whole world of trouble, and that Uchiha Sasuke _promises _it," Sasuke says, and then splashes Hinata again.

This time, with a smile, she splashes him back.


	10. secrets

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **Guess who has a day off today _and _slept in until one o' clock? That would be big ol' lazy _me. _

* * *

When it starts to get dark, Sasuke stretches and straightens, dusting himself down—Hinata is muddy and dirty, but there's the biggest smile on her face, and he waves her goodbye, watching as she disappears into the distance. He thinks maybe he should have walked with her. He remembers how his Ma is always saying it's not safe out when it's dark, and that he should always come back before it gets _too _dark, and he wonders if maybe it's not safe for Hinata either, when it's dark, and if maybe he should have walked her back until it _was _safe—but then he shakes his head and puts the thought out of his mind. He's got to go back home, after all, and Mikoto is going to be furious; Sasuke's caked in mud, and he's going to trek water all through the house, but he smiles as he walks back, with his hands tucked into his pockets. When he gets back to the Uchiha compound, Itachi is just on his way out and his eyes widen slightly when he sees the state that Sasuke is in.

"Ma is going to be angry," Itachi scolds gently, and wipes a smudge of mud away from beneath Sasuke's eye.

"I know," Sasuke frowns.

"What were you doing?"

"Feeding ducks," he explains, vaguely, and then walks past his brother. Then he grins back over his shoulder and says, "I saw a ghost, too."

"Hm? You'll have to tell me all about it."

"I can't—I've decided it's a secret, just like your secret missions. She's my secret ghost."


	11. study

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **I'm currently doing requests! If you PM me a pairing from Bleach, Naruto or Death Note, I'll write you a multi-chapter fic or one-shot in return~ :)

* * *

Days pass, and Sasuke does not see Hinata again.

Actually, he doesn't see much of anyone—not even his brother, because Itachi is too busy; he appears briefly, for at least half an hour in the mornings, and then he goes again, with a small smile on his face and a flick to Sasuke's forehead. He doesn't say what he's doing or where he's going, but Fugaku frowns lots when he's gone and Sasuke is a little bit lost; his Ma wasn't at all happy about the state of his clothes, and so he's not allowed to go out and play. He has to finish up on his studies, first, anyhow. He's borrowed this book out of Itachi's room—it's thick and brown and dusty, and each page smells like a time gone by—and he's been reading up on chakra uses; he doesn't think his Ma knows he has it, but both Itachi and his Pa do, and they keep asking him questions about it. At first, he used to flounder and stutter through his answers, and Itachi used to ruffle his hair fondly; now, he's read the entire book five times through and he's confident. When Fugaku quizzes him in the mornings, stern-faced and quiet, Sasuke answers confidently, easily, and he beams when he's finished, because he knows every answer is right.

It happens again that morning.

He finishes up his breakfast, answers all of the questions, and then Itachi asks, from his position by the kitchen sink, "Why haven't you enrolled him at the Academy, yet?"

"He's not ready," Fugaku dismisses.

"That is a lie," Itachi says, "And you _know _it."

There is silence.

Sasuke fidgets in his seat.

Fugaku watches him through narrow eyes.

Then—

"We shall see."


	12. exams

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **I'm still taking fanfiction requests. :)

* * *

Five days later, Sasuke is taking the Academy entrance test. It is made up of three shorter tests—the first is a physical exam, testing strength and fitness; it's difficult to fail, because they tend to take students regardless of their weight, basing their judgements more on perseverance and determination. The second test is a written examination, taken in a large hall with all the other applicants; it is at this point that at least half of the potential students are gotten rid of, based on their marks, but also on their performance during the test. Sasuke is sat near the back; he has a good view of the entire hall from where he is sat, and he watches the teachers pace backwards and forwards, weaving in between the desks and gazing down at students. That's part of the test, too, he thinks—Itachi _told _him so, because they look to see how a person acts beneath pressure. He has finished his test—he finished it three and a half minutes ago, now—and so when the teacher walks past, a man with warm eyes and a wicked scar across his nose, who introduced himself as Iruka and said he would be their sensei if they passed, stops in front of Sasuke, he doesn't panic. He leans back in his chair, puts his pencil down on his test, and then looks straight into those warm eyes and _challenges _him.

Iruka looks momentarily surprised.

Then he smiles.

Sasuke waits for him to walk away, and then lets out a breath he doesn't realise he's been holding.

He looks around.

He catches sight of short, dark hair and pale skin, and, this time, his eyes widen in surprise, and he finds himself gazing at Hinata. She's sat next to the window, hunched over her exam, scribbling furiously, but she seems to sense eyes looking at her, because she looks up—her gaze locks with Sasuke's, and she blushes furious red. Sasuke really hopes none of the examiners saw that, and then lifts his hand in a lazy wave—actually, he really hopes none of the examiners saw _that. _If they'd spotted him, he could have been thrown out, expelled from the exam, and then his Pa would have been _very _angry with him—and Itachi would have been extremely disappointed. It's worth it, though, because then Hinata smiles a tiny, little, ghostly smile, and her entire face lights up, and he thinks he has to go and see her and the ducklings again, _soon._


	13. blah, blah, blah

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **If you request a fic off me, don't be surprised if I PM you again, with the actual fic, in a month or so. I'm currently swamped with exams, but writing is a wonderful and perfect means of escape. :D

* * *

"You've all done extremely well today," Iruka says, when they have all finished—Sasuke is sitting forward in his chair, head resting in his hands, and trying his very hardest not to sneak sideways glances across at the other students. Instead, he gazes forwards, eyes trained on Iruka, and watches as the older man's lips tug into a large, proud smile, and he praises, "You should all be _very _proud of yourselves, and please, try not to look quite so scared. I promise I don't bite! Now, your parents are well aware of all the details, I'm sure, but I want you to understand, as well."

There's silence, then.

Everyone is listening attentively.

Sasuke sits up a little straighter and narrows his eyes.

Across the way, he notices Hinata's eyes have gone very, _very _serious, and that makes the back of his neck feel hot and the tips of his ears turn red.

He decides he will ignore her.

"Not all of you will enter the Academy," Iruka continues, oblivious to the war Sasuke is waging in his mind—because he can't stop himself from glancing across at Hinata again, but that makes his stomach feel funny, like he's eaten too many tomatoes on a sunny day—with a small smile on his face. "That, I'm afraid, is the plain truth of the matter—there will be those of you who simply won't pass, and those of you who just aren't _quite _there yet, and then there will be those of you who we simply won't be able to take, due to lack of space in classrooms and so on. I'm speaking truthfully to you because of the fact that you have all taken this exam, and that means that you wish to take on the responsibility—the _huge _responsibility—of shinobi training. One day, you could be stood in my place, teaching prospective students, and you'll be thinking the exact same thing I am thinking right now: _this _is our future. _You _are our future. You will be the ones who'll protect the village, and you'll be the ones who teach our students; and even those of you who don't become shinobi may work in hospitals, in shops, in libraries—there is an important place for all of you, but each place has a huge amount of responsibility. And if you truly want to be a shinobi, regardless of your age, I cannot treat you like a child anymore, because one day, you won't be a child. One day, you will hold a person's life in your hands. But today, it is time for you to begin accepting your responsibilities, to—"

Sasuke tunes out.

He _hates _lectures.

He's heard too many of them.

Iruka is very good at it, of course, but _no one _is as good at boring the life out of you as his Pa—not that he'd ever say that to his Pa, of course.

And so he sits there, trying his hardest to look as though he's paying attention, straight-backed and looking straight ahead—but every now and then, his gaze flits across to the side and he is captured by pale skin, dark hair, and the brilliant eyes of a girl so full of want, of _determination_, that it makes him smile slightly just to look at her.


	14. pink

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **GCSEs are a bitch, and luckily over now, so expect more frequent updates. Also, I like Sakura—girls other than Hinata will appear in this, just warning you now.

* * *

Iruka is late to let them leave after the exam, but Sasuke doesn't mind—he doesn't particularly want to give his father the question-by-question recount that he'll expect, and he's not sure whether or not Itachi'll be at home waiting for him, so he lingers for as long as possible, arms folded over his chest, scuffing his toe across the ground. He kicks a pebble, watches it skip across dirt and mud, and glances across at Hinata, who is speaking in a hushed voice to her father, face bright and excited—then his eyes are practically assaulted by _pink_, and he takes a few hasty steps backwards, hears, "Oh, uhm, I'm sorry—did I, uh, walk into you?"

Sasuke sees pink and pink and more pink, and then blinks a few times, finally replies, "No, you didn't."

"Oh," says _pink_, "Oh."

"Uh, well, okay," Sasuke says, and then rubs his nose uncomfortably, continues, "I'm Sasuke."

She blushes, and that's weird, because she just goes _pinker_, and says, "It's nice to meet you, Sasuke—I'm Sakura. I, uh—well, did you find the exam hard?"

"Not really," he says, and looks at her sideways, sits down and hopes she doesn't sit down next to him.

"Neither did I," she announces, proudly, and _sits down beside him_, "I studied _really _hard. There was that one question, though, about chakra control and the using it to glide across water—I know you can use it to _walk _across water, my daddy told me, but _gliding? _I don't know, that sounds like a bird or a swan or—it doesn't sound like a _shinobi_. Can I sit with you? My daddy is always late—he's a shinobi, too, and, well," she says, awkwardly, looks a bit sad, and Sasuke doesn't ask, just nods his head. She grins, and continues, "Thank you—you're really nice, you know that? And you've got _really _pretty hair."


	15. linger

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **I'm not dead, I promise.

* * *

After half an hour of idle chatter—which mostly consists of Sakura speaking in an excited, frantic voice and Sasuke occasionally grunting every now and again—Sasuke manages to untangle himself from her, under the pretence of going to search for his father. That's not true, though; he knows he's walking home alone, unless Itachi comes to collect him, but he doubts he will—instead, he crosses over to stand an awkward distance away from Hinata, feet scuffing the ground below him, kicking pebbles absently.

He stands for a little while without saying anything.

Hinata doesn't notice him—she's too busy talking—but her father spots him instantly.

His gaze is cool and stern, but Sasuke doesn't flinch.

(His father is _way _worse.)

Instead, he holds his gaze—and that makes Hinata's father smile slightly, lips quirking upwards in an unfriendly smile, and then he speaks in a low voice, saying something Sasuke doesn't hear. He gestures in Sasuke's direction, though, and Hinata lets out an audible squeak, spins on her heels and looks at Sasuke like she doesn't really see him. Then her eyes widen and she goes a wonderful shade of crimson. She turns again then—practically _spins, _like a windmill—and ducks her head in a bow to her father, who simply shakes his head with a very quiet laugh and says, "Be back by dinner, Hinata."

"Of course, father," Hinata replies, and then ushers Sasuke away like she's embarrassed by him.


	16. beautiful

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **Oh, look, here's another chapter, woo!

* * *

Sasuke crouches down in front of Fang and tips his head, watches as the other ducks pretty much instantly swarm towards Hinata—it's weird, he thinks, how they actually do seem to treat her like she's the mother duck, and then he makes himself chuckle, thinking of Hinata with a fluffy duck tail and a beak. She doesn't notice, though; she looks so relaxed, completely peaceful, gathering the ducks about her; Happy nudges alongside her leg, bumps into her knee, and Dumpy squawks pitifully until Hinata bops him lightly on his beak with her middle finger. He watches, because he thinks it's—_cute_, maybe, but that word makes him wrinkle his nose and feel a bit stupid, so he changes his mind.

He sees how the sunlight casts long shadows across the ground—watches as Hinata tips her head back and laughs.

She's very, _very _happy, he thinks, and she looks—_pretty._

No, he doesn't like pretty, either; pretty is for pink and girls like Sakura.

Hinata is—

_Beautiful, _his mind helpfully supplies, and an embarrassed flush passes over his face.

She looks at him curiously.

Fang looks at him like he knows _exactly _what Sasuke's thinking.


	17. pride

**disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto~  
**summary: **This is not a love story, but it is a story about love. —Sasuke/Hinata  
**notes: **Guys, I'm not dead, just wanted to show you that.

* * *

After that, Sasuke doesn't see Hinata for a while—he's accepted into the Academy, and, after that, he spends most of his time working, studying, determined to be the best just like his brother was—_is, _he corrects, and feels a little silly. It's hard work; gruelling and unforgiving, and he comes home with bruises all up his arms, blossoming across his knees, and lets his brother rub ointment across his knees, making soft soothing noises to hush his occasional hiss of pain. Itachi doesn't say anything—doesn't congratulate him or console him—but there's pride in his eyes, in his smile, as he ghosts his fingers gently across a bruise on Sasuke's cheek and says, "I was covered in bruises too, you know."

Sasuke doesn't think he was—doesn't remember them, if it's true.

He only remembers his brother being perfect.

"They hurt now," Itachi says, softly, and crouches in front of Sasuke, "But they will be worth it."

Sasuke holds his gaze for a little while, before sniffing and saying, "Who says they hurt at all?"

Itachi laughs, but his eyes are still gentle and soft and so full of pride.


End file.
